Off the Wire

Islam: Religion of Peace

Is this true? Kim Riddlebarger points to this article and claims otherwise. I have oft raised the question as it seems that the Muslim you meet next door is friendly enough for our culture to say, “If it works for them…” But I have constantly been thinking, are these Muslims consistent with their teaching? If an imam tells them that it is righteous to kill, and they do not kill, can we legitimately say that Islam is a religion of peace? Here is a great excerpt from Riddlebarger’s post:

The irony is that twenty years ago this threat was not even on the radar. Who would have thought that American evangelicalism would become so doctrinally wimpy as to be helpless against Islamic growth and ideology? Seeker-centered worship and vapid felt-need oriented preaching are quickly exposed for what they are in the face of a threat like Islamic expansion. Islam is growing and expanding in most communities in the United States, probably yours. And what are you doing about it?

After traveling to the Middle East, I can say that all Muslims are not terrorists. It is foolish to think so. That would be like assuming everyone who goes to church in the United States is a Christ-follower. Just because people who call themselves Christians aren’t living consistently with Christ’s teaching, does this mean we make value judgments on the religion? No. We point to the teachings and show the person that he is inconsistent and he should get his knee bowed to Jesus’ lordship. How long will it take until the imams do the same with their inconsistent parishioners?

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Comments 6

Well, unfortunately, it looks like the younger generation is being taught about such killing of the infidels, Jews & Christians. Yes, I’ve seen a few more mosques where I am and have begun to take notice. What are they really teaching there and should I be cautious because if taught correctly then my and all non-Muslims are endangered.

I’m having a hard time distinguishing between the messages in Deuteronomy, Leviticus, et al, and the messages from the Quorum/Koran.
Having been raised with the best and the worst that Christian fundamentalism has to offer, I am amazed at the stark irony and the predictable consistency with which my countrymen paint an entire religion with the paintbrush provided by the extremists. I thought for a moment that you would resist that temptation and you did and admirable job until the end when the seed of fear was almost imperceptibly planted.
I have no illusions regarding the fate of my everlasting soul if man’s interpretations of God’s will turn out to be accurate. Ironically, I will be dragged into the pit of eternal damnation with the knowledge that I did a much better job of following the teachings of Jesus after I rejected the undependable ideologies of man along with the earthly trappings of religion.
When did religious introspection breathe its last dying gasp? It must have been centuries ago.

Matt Wireman,
You seem to be very knowledgable about lots of issues. I am considering getting a PhD in Systematic Theology. Do you have some suggestions of places to do that at? How much do they cost? How do you get them funded? etc… WIll I need to take the GRE? How long do I have to complete it?

Good thought, Greg. When Christians were acccused of being cannibals and reckless in the early church period, they didn’t retaliate by riots and such. Instead, they reasoned with people to show that the accusations were false. It’s much like the bully on the playground who hits the scrawny fellow. He doesn’t know how to reason because he trusts in his biceps. Analogously, it seems that those who claim that Islam is a religion of peace, are peaceful people. But for those who want Sharia Law to win the day do not seem to denounce the accusations by explaining the Qu’ranic teachings. I would be interested to know how much the militant Muslims study their scriptures? Does anyone know?

I just Googled the phrases “death threat from Muslim”, “death threat from Hindu” and same for Christian and Buddhist. Anyone with a grip on reality (i.e. who is not politically correct) will know in advance which religion will score highest. But the scale of the difference between top and bottom surprised even me, (and I regard the politically correct with more contempt than most people). Hindu scored 1, Buddhist 1, Christian 3, and Muslim 120 !!!